Gamble Everything for Love
by frenchpiment
Summary: Ben Lee inspired sequel to oneshot 'You and I'. Hermione and Draco are forced to break up when he joins the death eaters...but a late night conversation with Draco leaves Hermione worried and she figures out what has to be done.
1. Goodbye My Lover

**a/n: Hey everyone! This story, will have 3 Chapters, so quite short. It's kind of a sequel to 'You and I', one of my Dramione oneshots, but I am redoing the first chapter, so sorry if it's a little repetitive of You and I. I was going to do a straight 'Goodbye My Lover' inspired fic, but I thought that it would probably be a little too similar to 'You and I' and the idea of combining it with a Ben Lee inspried 'Gamble everything for Love' story kept popping into my head. Also, the You and I reviews i got, (all four!) said they wanted a sequel...so here it is. **

**Disclaimer: JK owns anything you recognise from the books, James Blunt owns Goodbye my Lover, but the plot is mine!**

**GAMBLE EVERYTHING FOR LOVE **

**Chapter 1 - Goodbye My Lover**

Hermoine sat on a desk in the Charms clasroom, swinging her legs in time to a tune in her head. She was smiling to her self as she waited, excitement evident on her face. The door swung open and Hermione's he head snapped around and watched as he came into the room.

"You're here!" She jumped off the desk, propelling herself onto him, kissing him as soon as she was close enough. He immediately wrapped his arms around her, holding her so tightly Hermione thought she was going to break in two. She pulled back, worried.

"Draco...what's wrong?" He didn't answer, instead just stayed holding her, breathing in the scent of her hair, his eyes closed, swaying slightly on his feet.

"Hermione, we need to talk," Draco said slowly his eyes still shut. A sharp pain constricted in Hermione's chest, suddenly breathing wasn't coming as easily anymore.

"About?" Hermione asked tentatively, a million different thoughts running through her head..._He's in love with Pansy Parkinson, He's secretly been seeing someone behind my back, He was just in it for a bet...Anything like that would be fine..._

"I'm not in love with Pansy, I haven't been seeing anyone behind your back, I'm definitely not in it for a bet." Draco could read the thoughts running through her mind as easily if she had been saying them out loud.

"It's about Voldemort isn't it?" Hermione managed to choke out, her eyes now clenched shut, her hands clutching at Draco's school shirt.

"Who, if you think about it, is actually worse than Pansy Parkinson."

"How is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"I'm not sure really...it seemed like a good thing to say at the time."

"What do you have to do?"

"Well, for the time being, stay in school, but over the Christmas Break, I have to go to this house...stay there the whole time, I'm not sure what for really. Voldemort want's me to spy on Dumbledore from a different perspective to Snape. He thinks Dumbledore might say different stuff to head boy. I suppose a bright spot is that I can spy for the order."

"Draco, you could die." Hermione's eyes began to well up with tears, and Draco pulled her in close.

_Did I dissapoint you? Or Let you Down?_

_Should I be feeling guilty? Let the judges frown._

_Cause I saw the end, before we'd begun,_

_Yes I saw you were blinded,_

_And I knew I had won._

"You know what this means don't you?" Draco asked softly. "We have to end it."

"What? Why?" Hermione pulled back from his embrace.

"You know why Hermione. If anyone found out about this. Anyone at all, it could mean we both die. Who knows? Someone finds out and it's all over the school in minutes. And if it's all over the school, then Voldemort knows."

"Oh my god, why did we even start this? You knew what was going to happen, you knew it would end up like this!" Hermione was getting worked up easily, and Draco's reply didn't calm her down much initially.

"I did. Hermione I knew this couldn't last. Why _did_ we even start this? Because we kept meeting in the library. Because you had the last copy of that Potions manual. Because I love you. Hermione I would do anything to spend even an hour with you. Thats why. Because it was so good while it lasted, that thinking about you will sustain me whenever I'm gone."

_So I took what's mine, by eternal right._

_Took your soul out, into the night._

_It may be over but it wont stop that,_

_I am here for you if you'd only care._

"You always have such good answers Draco. And I wouldn't for a million galleons go back, re-do anything. But I just don't know what I'd do without you."

"I'm not going to be gone completely. I'll be in school mostly until Christmas break, and even though I don't think we should meet again, I'm still going to be here for you. We have to patrol together anyway, so we would see each other then. Even if we have to keep pretending we hate each other."

"You're really sounding like you want this Draco...we _have_ to patrol together anyway. It's like I'm something that has to be fitted it, and it's handy that we have to patrol together."

"Hermione, you're being irrational. I am saying this because I want to protect you. Because I love you. Because I don't think I would be able to cope if anything happened to you. And it'd be even worse if something happened to you because you and I are together. If something happened to you because I couldn't let you go? Hermione I wouldn't survive without you with me. I just wouldn't".

_You touched my heart, you touched my soul,_

_Changed my life and all my goals._

_Love is blind, that I knew,_

_My heart was blinded by you._

The tears in Hermione's eyes spilled down her cheeks, and she pressed her face into Draco's chest. Draco forced himself to keep talking, knowing that if he stopped now, he wouldn't get to say everything he wanted to.

"Hermione, do you even realise the effect you've had on me? You turned my life around. Until we got together, my sole ambition was to inherit. Preferably early. I was an awful person. I picked on you because you were an easy target. I was an arrogant dickhead, so put it simply. Just being with you has had the biggest impact on my life, and I have no idea how I can repay you. I'm almost happy because I can help out the Order, and do something towards making myself someone who is worthy of you. Hermione, at the risk of sounding like Celine Dion, so much has happened just because you loved me. Hell, I know who Celine Dion is, I'd say that's my most impressive achievement to date." Draco's attempt to make Hermione laugh elicited a weak giggle (still into his now damp shirt) but nothing more.

_I've kissed your lips, and held your head,_

_Shared your dreams and shared your bed,_

_I know you well, I know your smell,_

_I've been addicted to you._

"Come on Hermione," Draco cajoled, "I know you're dying to say something. I can tell."

"I don't want you to go. I don't want you to feel like you have to prove anything to me, or to Harry, or the Order or anyone. But I know you can't not go. You'd probably die. I don't want that to happen. I just, hate the idea that I'll be sitting here in Hogwarts, worrying and worrying about absolutely everything that could be happening to you throughout the whole of the winter break, while you're going to be off helping out side. I can't do anything. Nothing. Do you know why? Because it's too high risk. Because I'm one of Harry's best friends. Do you know how awful it is to know that if something happens, I won't be the first to know, because no one knows about us. Not even Dumbledore, or Harry, or Ron, the only three other people that know you're going to be a spy. In fact, if something awful happens, there will be no way in hell I can leave here to come to you because - "

"Hermione you can't leave Hogwarts for anything. Not for anything. No matter what you hear. I know you, I know you're going to want to be out there, but you have to stay here where you'll be safe. I know you'll be itching to go with Harry wherever it is he goes over some weekends, but you just can't. It's like you said, it's much too high a risk. I know you'll feel like you want to explode inside from not doing anything, it's how I've felt up until now. But you just have to stay safe, for me."

_Goodbye My Lover, Goodbye my friend,_

_You have been the one, you have been the one for me._

_Goodbye My Lover, Goodbye my friend,_

_You have been the one, you have been the one for me._

Hermione finally looked up at Draco, meeting his eyes for the first time. His grey eyes were staring fiercely back at her. He lent in and gently pressed his lips to hers, and was startled when Hermione kissed him back forcefullyher hands around the back of his head, pulling him in closer. He kissed her back just as agressively, snaking his arms around her waist, holding her hips posessively. They kissed hungrily, knowing that it would be one of the last times they could be together for a long while. One of Draco's hands moved to Hermione's hair, tipping her head back a little, the other hand sliding under her robes, holding her back more closely. Hermione moaned into the kiss, then pulled away suddenly, breathing hard.

"Draco, we can't, we have to finish...this is just making it harder to leave."

_I am a dreamer, and when I wake,_

_You can't break my spirit, it's my dreams you take._

_And as you move on, remember me._

_Remember us and all we used to be._

"We're not really splitting up you know," Draco said, running a hand through his mussed up hair. "You could move on while I'm gone, thinking back at us, a fond memory in your mind. Or you could do what I'm hoping, and know that when this is over well be able to be together, not in secret, mind you. It's the thought of you, and the dream that we'll be together once Potter has done his hero thing, that will sustain me, give me something that I know I have to live out this war for."

"I won't be moving on. It's like you said, it's thinking of us together that will get me through the day. It'll be something inside that no-one, not even a dementor can take."

"Because Hermione, you're the basis for my patronus."

_I've seen you cry, I've seen you smile,_

_I've watched you sleeping for a while._

_I'd be the father of your child, _

_I'd spend a lifetime with you._

_I know your fears, and you know mine,_

_We've had our doubts but now we're fine,_

_And I love you, I swear thats true._

_I cannot live without you._

Hermione had tears in her eyes again at this, but smiled through them, blushing a little under Draco's steady gaze.

"I love you Draco."

"Just promise me one thing. When all this is over, when Voldemort's gone, and when Potter reigns supreme, gag, you'll be mine. Forever. It's not a proposal, but I just want you to know that I couldn't think of anything I want more than to be with you forever. I don't care if you want nine children, if you want to fire the houseelves, anything really and I'd do it in a heart beat just to spend my life with you. I know it's the weirdest relationship in the world, and I know that at first I was like 'what is going on', and I know it's completely out of character for me, but you're the one. I know you so well it's like I'm inside your head sometimes, and sometimes, I feel that the only way to get close enough to you would be if we were sharing the same skin. You're the other half of me, you complete me."

_Goodbye My Lover, Goodbye my friend,_

_You have been the one, you have been the one for me._

_Goodbye My Lover, Goodbye my friend,_

_You have been the one, you have been the one for me._

Draco stood looking at Hermione as he said this, then without warning crashed his lips down on hers, kissing her thoroughly one last time. He pulled away then whispered in her ear.

_And I still hold you hand in mine,_

_in mine when I'm asleep._

_and I will bear my soul in time_

_when I'm kneeling at your feet._

"As long as you want it, I'm here for you. I'll visit you in your dreams, and contact you with this once I've gone. I love you." Draco held her tightly for a second more, pressing something into her hand, while Hermione whispered _I love you_, then turned and walked out the door, not allowing himself to look back at her again. Hermione watched him go, and let the tears she had been holding back flow freely down her face. She sank to the floor and just cried. The school bell rang, signalling the start of dinner. Hermione dried her face, fixed her hair and red eyes with a couple of quick spells, straightened her robes and left the Charms classroom. She looked down at the thing Draco had given her. It turned out to be tiny locket on a gold chain. She opened it to find a minature photo of Draco and her which she had taken with her wand. She reached up and closed the clasp around her neck. As soon as she let go of it, it vanished, yet she could still feel it against her neck. She touched it lightly with her hand and it reappeared momentarily. Hermione could feel her eyes pricking with tears again, she opened the locket once more, looked hungrily at the photo within before she hurried down to dinner.

_Goodbye My Lover, Goodbye my friend,_

_You have been the one, you have been the one for me._

_Goodbye My Lover, Goodbye my friend,_

_You have been the one, you have been the one for me._

**a/n: So, what do you think? Hopefully you like it, only one way to let me know! More to come soon.**


	2. Apart

_**a/n: Sorry about the wait...thanks everyone for the reviews from last chapter, hope you all like this one!**_

_**Disclaimer: JK owns anything you recognise from the books.**_

_**Chapter Two - Apart**_

The next day, Hermion was walking with Harry and Ron to Charms class when she saw Draco coming towards them. A jolt of happiness shot thorugh her, followed by the awful realisation that they weren't together anymore. She had to turn away from Harry and Ron, hiding the tears in her glassy eyes. When Draco reached them, he brushed past Hermione, letting his hand slide over hers. Again Hermione felt the electricity when he touched her, but knew that if they were going to make a clean break, she couldn't hold out for inconspicuous meetings in the halls. So from then on, the next few weeks were hell on earth. Draco was insistent on their separation so Hermione had to deal with seeing him in the halls pretending she didn't exist, and she had to pretend right back. Each morning Hermione got up earlier and earlier, obsessively applying concealement charms on the increasingly dark circles under her eyes. In classes she had to force herself to answer questions, and talkhappily with Harry and Ron. No-one knew she was dating anyone, so they couldn't know they had broken up. Despite the generous use of magic, Hermione's face still looked pinched and pale, although Hermione explained this to Harry and Ron as something to do with a 'girl issue' and they didn't press it. Ginny couldn't be fobbed off with such a wimpy excuse, she knew there was nothing in a female's biology which caused her to be unhappy 24/7, but fortunately, she wasn't in any classes with Hermione, and spent most of her free time with Harry.

Draco was having just as hard a time coping at Hermione. He was forcing himself not to contact Hermione via the locket until after he had gone away, afraid that if he spoke to her every night, he would slip up during the day, thinking that they were still together. Once they were apart it would be safe to talk, since it wasn't like they would see each other the next day.

They were only alone together once before the start of the Christmas holidays. Hermione had been called to the trophy room to oversee two first year students on detention. When she walked in, she was surprised to see Draco standing nervously in the middle of the room.

"There is no detention," Draco started, "and I know I already said goodbye. I just wanted to see you once more before I went. I know it's stupid, and it's going to make it all the much harder to leave, but I can't go without hugging you once more, without kissing you again." Hermione stepped up to him, insanely happy they were together and alone, but ready to curl up in a ball and cry for a week at the same time. Draco pulled her into his arms, smelling her hair, rubbing her back, holding her close. Hermione melted into the hug, but it didn't last long. Draco pulled back after a minute, kissed her once on the mouth, then broke contact altogether.

"I'll never be able to leave if I've got you like that."

Hermione's throat constricted, not letting her choke out that she didn't care if he couldn't leave, she would be perfectly happy if he just stayed with her forever, that she loved him. Instead, what came out was:

"I want you to know, that if Voldemort hurts you in anyway I will kill him. Don't give me that crap about Harry being the only one who can kill him. He hurts you and he will have to answer to me. I am the best goddamn witch that has ever been to this school, and he should be afraid."

Draco laughed, real amusement on his face for the first time in weeks.

"I'd let him know, but that wouldn't really work...hey Dark Lord, my muggle born girlfriend says if you hurt me she'll come and get you. Hermione, I love you. I'm sure I'll be fine, but I also have no doubt that if it came to that, you'd win against him, hands down."

"You're placating me, but I'll take what I can get. I love you." Draco nodded, smiled and walked out of the room, leaving Hermoine to curl up in a ball, the brief happiness dissapearing in the wake of Draco's departure, leaving only depression behind. Hermione stayed sitting alone in the trophy room for a good hour and a half, glad that at least Harry and Ron expected her to be gone for a while. She didn't cry, instead sat on the cold stone floor in the dimming light thinking about Draco. Her mind kept wandering to the day they'd gone to the Shreiking Shack together, slept together for the first time, then actually fallen asleep on the dilapidated old couch. Draco had woken up at five the next morning, and they'd had to hurry back to the castle before anyone woke up. The problem was, neither one could stop giggling, smiling, touching each other...just a quick hand hold, Draco stroking Hermione's hair, Hermione tugging Draco's cloak further over his shoulders. By the time they made it up to the Castle, the Gryffindor Quidditch team were already practicing, and a few early risers were up and about. Hermione had grabbed some toast from the Great Hall, and wandered down to the quidditch pitch, pretending she had just woken up and come to visit.

Sitting on the Trophy Room floor, something Draco had said kept coming back to her. A very simple statement, but one of the nicest things anyone had ever said to her. _Hermione, you are the nicest thing to ever come into my life. I love you._ It had been the morning after, when they woke in the Shack together, Draco had woken her, then whispered this to her, as if someone else was listening. It was the first time he had ever said I love you to her, and, the first time he had ever said I love you to someone who wasn't a family member.

Draco had left the Trophy Room, gone to Dumbledore's office where he was briefed on what to tell Voldemort about the Order, briefed on contact methods, SOS signals etc...then it was into the carriages and down to Hogsmeade with everyone else who was going home for the holidays. When they arrived at Hogsmeade, all the other students boarded the train, while Snape quietly took Draco aside and told him to wait until he came back. Snape supervised the boarding of the train, then came back for Draco. They apparated to the outskirts of the Riddle House grounds, where the garden morphed into overgrown woods. As soon as they had arrived, Draco took one look at the house, and threw up in the bushes. Snape hesitantly patted him on the back, then asked as he straightened up,

"You ok? You're going to be fine. These holidays, all you'll have is some extra training, most probably with me, and briefing sessions. You won't be getting the mark because it'd be to obvious at school."

"And I don't want it."

"Draco, I don't think anyone in that house beside you and I cares about what you want. You have to be careful in there. Pretend that you're looking forward to getting the mark after graduation. Remember, your life dream is to serve our Lord."

"My life dream. Got it." Draco and Snape walked slowly through the overgrown garden to the house. To an outsider, the Riddle House would appear to be completely abandoned, big padlocks on the doors, a garden growing out of control, boarded up windows. Since the caretaker had vanished a few years, everyone from the village gave the house a wide berth, worried that whatever got Frank would get them too. Snape led Draco around to the back door, opened it with his wand and stepped inside into the gloom.

"_Lumos_". Draco lit his wand tip as Snape shut and locked the door behind them. Draco waved his wand in an arc, illuminating the room as he went. The back door had lead them into a small coat room, a single gumboot lying abandoned on the boot rack.

"Upstairs. You wont be seeing anyone tonight. It's too late, too much to talk about. Tomorrow morning you will meet with the inner circle, and tomorrow afternoon, you'll have your first audience with the Dark Lord. I'm to show you to your room." Snape lead the way upstairs, and down a long gloomy corridor. A few doors had light seeping under the door, sounds of people moving about within.

It was almost midnight by the time Draco was alone in his room. Despite the fact that he wasn't going to meet anyone until the next day, his father and friends of his father had come to congratulate him. Draco stayed wide awake until the last light had ben shut off and the house was completely dark. He took out his wand and pointed at the fourth finger of his right hand. A gold signet ring appeared, engraved with intertwining letters: HD. He whispered a complex spell and the top of the ring went dark.

Hermoine was jolted from her sleep when the invisible locket around her neck grew warm and began to vibrate. She fumbled for her wand, closing the curtains around her bed, and casting a silencing charm. She opened the locket and saw Draco's face had replaced the photo of the two of them. As Hermione opened the locket, her face came into view in Draco's ring. He hurriedly performed a silencing charm, combining it with an add on spell which meant that anyone listening at the door would hear someone breathing deeply, occasionally snoring.

"Hey," Draco said softly to Hermione, smiling at seeing her face.

"Hi," Hermione didn't know what to say.

"How have you been?"

"Ok I suppose, not great. But you know."

"Yeah I do know. I am so sorry Hermione, I just knew that if I talked to you, or contacted you I would have broken, I wouldn't have been able to leave, or alternatively I would have done something incredibly stupid like kissed you in the middle of the Great Hall at breakfast. Now that I'm gone I won't be able to slip up. It's not like I'm going to see you hanging around the gardens here or anything."

"Where's here? Where did Snape take you?"

"Some big old house, really creepy. It's all boarded up, the garden is all overgrown, I don't think it's near any wizarding things, it's quite deserted, I think there might be a small muggle village somewhere around here."

"Creepy. What's going to happen to you? Will you have to get...the mark?" Even though her face was tiny, Draco could see she looked incredibly worried.

"No. They decided it would be too obvious at school, I'm supposed to get it after graduation."

"But you won't will you? I mean, that would tie you to Voldemort."

"Not if I can help it. Maybe by then Harry'll have finished him up."

"Maybe." Hermione couldn't speak much. It was a combination of being able to just have a conversation with Draco, and the deadening feeling of worry in her stomach. It was hard enough to see him without bursting into tears.

"I can't talk much tonight," Draco broke the silence, "I have to get up really early for a meeting with the inner circle. Probably not the best idea for me to be too tired to concentrate."

"Good luck, be careful tomorrow. I love you."

"Love you too." Draco had purpously left out that he would be meeting Voldemort as early as the next day. _She would only worry more all day, I'll tell her tomorrow night_, Draco thought as he closed the connection and vanished the ring.

Back at Hogwarts, Hermione let a couple of tears spill over her cheeks as the photo of the two of them appeared again in the locket. She closed it up, let it vanish again, undid the spells around her bed and tried to sleep. Tried to sleep, ended up using her wand to perform a complex version of a dreamless sleep spell, and finally drifted off. Hermione woke with a jolt the next morning, sunshine streaming in through the window. She dazed groggily around the dormitory, seeing that Lavendar and Pavarti's beds were already empty. It took her about five minutes to stand up straight, and dress, end eventually Hermione wandered down the stairs, still partly asleep. The Gryffindor common room was almost empty, save for Harry, Ron and Ginny who were curled up together in front of the fire.

"Hey guys," Hermione said, as she wandered over, yawning over her words.

"We were wondering when you'd be getting up. It's past eleven," Ginny said.

"I've been so tired lately, it's nice to be able to sleep in without worrying about class or anything."

"Yeah you've looked a little flat lately. What's up?" Harry asked.

"Just more work this year than I expected. Trying to get it all done sometimes eats into sleeping time you know? It'd be nice to still have that time-turner. I could work all night and still get a whole night's sleep."

"We haven't been getting that much work," Ron commented, "you must be overdoing it a little. I saw that esay you handed into Snape yesterday. It must've been a whole roll of parchment longer than he asked, and he asked for two rolls!"

"I like to be thorough. Anyone up for heading down to the kitchens? I'm starving." Hermione still felt guilty at lying to her best friends about her relationship with Draco, yet at the same time was glad to have such an easy excuse in her school work. Ron and Harry jumped to their feet, and led the way with Hermione and Ginny trailing behind.

"You sure it's just work Hermione? You've never been this stressed out before. And what is this mysterious 'girl problem' I heard about. Harry muttered something about 'women's issues' the other day."

"Well work and a combination of bad PMS. Nothing to worry about." Hermione tried (and almost succeeded) to carry off being 'light and breezy'. Ginny wasn't convinced, but held her tongue and didn't say anything more. All day the four just hung around the castle grounds together, having a snow fight, sitting by the lake talking, just relaxing. Well everyone except Hermione. All day long she felt like there was a ball of lead in her stomach. Despite being hungry, she could only manage to eat a few bites at lunch time, feeling that if she ate anything else she would be sick. Harry, Ron and Ginny all noticed that something was wrong, but Hermione continued to plead work stress, so they said nothing. That night, Hermione lay awake, waiting for Draco to contact her. She dozed off at around midnight, but woke immediately when the locket grew warm against her skin. She whipped her wand out from under her pillow, cast her silencing charms, and opened the locket.

"You're awake, I was just going to leave you a message. How are you?" Draco was happy to be able to talk to Hermione. It was around three in the morning, he had had to wait for the celebrations to die down.

"I'm fine. How was today? How come it's so late...was there someone up until now or something?"

"Celebrations. Sorry about that. Today was...overwhelming. This morning I had my meeting with the inner circle, where I had to make a report on what Dumbledore had been talking to me about, and then I was prepped for this afternoon when I had my first audience with Voldemort." Hermione gasped, "You met Voldemort today? You didn't tell me you were meeting him."

"I know, you would have worried all day."

"I worried all day anyway."

"Well everything was fine. I told them what Dumbledore said to tell, then had to tell Voldemort the same stuff again. Then because things had gone well for me, there was a big celebration, which basically meant everyone got drunk and took ages to go to bed."

"I can't believe you had to report to him on your first day..."

"I know, I hardly slept at all last night thinking about it."

"Draco, I'm really scared for you. I can't stop thinking that something awful is going to happen."

"Thanks for the encouragement! Hermione, you've got to stop worrying, you're going to drive yourself insane, and then where would we be? Nothing is going to happen to me these holidays. I'm only here for ten days, and I've got Snape looking out for me."

"I- It'll just be better when you're back here. I mean, I know we wont be able to talk anymore, but I cant stand the thought of you out there. I just need you to be back here, safe."

"Hermione love, no-one's going to be safe until Potter does the hero thing. But until then, I promise you that I'm not going to let anything happen to me if I know that you're still there for me."

Hermione still had an awful sense of foreboding hanging over her head, but tried to smile for Draco all the same. Suddenly, the Draco looked alarmed and he looked up at something Hermione couldn't see. Someone's voice came through the connection clear as a bell,

"What the fuck is going on here Draco?" Then Draco's voice was muttering the charm which ended the connection, and everything went blank.

**a/n: hope you liked it...will update soon, please review!**


	3. Gamble Everything for Love

**a/n: I am so so so so so incredibly sorry this has taken so long to update. Combination of uni exams, learning Chinese, best friend's boyfriend dramas, my own boyfriend dramas, illness (stupid glange) and general exhaustion. Here it is, the final installment of _Gamble Everything for Love_…**

**Disclaimer: JK owns Harry & Co. and Ben Lee owns _Gamble Everything for Love_**

_**Chapter Three - Gamble Everything for Love**_

Hermione screamed, and almost had a heart attack. Her heart pounding, tears pouring down her face, she snatched up her wand, ended all the charms surrounding her bed, and ran to the sixth form girl's dormitory. She shook Ginny awake, and whispered to her to go to the common room. She ran up the staircase to the boy's dorm and woke Harry and Ron as well. Hermione gathered the four around the fireplace in the common room, pulling all the arm chairs in closely. The other three were sitting, half asleep, but also more than a little worried as to why Hermione had woken them up at three thirty in the morning.

"What's up Her-ermione?" Ron asked through a huge yawn.

"Ok, this might take some explaining. Ginny first of all, you should know that Malfoy is actually a member of the order, he's spying for us." Ginny looked shocked, then a little put out that she was the only one who didn't know, then confused.

"Why are you telling me this now? When I could be sleeping."

"Ok, please don't anyone yell or anything. The fact is, I have been dating Draco since January. We got together just after last winter break." The reactions were predictable, Harry and Ron looked shocked and disgusted, and more than a little pissed off. Ginny meanwhile looked as though something had just been explained to her, and that everything made sense again.

"Malfoy? Hermione, seriously, you and Malfoy?" Ron asked, exchanging a look with Harry which clearly said _Hermione's gone insane._

"Seriously Ron. Draco and me. Ok I know that this is a shock and it's out of nowhere, but it's not actually the focus of the conversation. Which I'm sure you realised because why would I wake you at three in the morning to tell you."

"Hermione," Ginny interrupted, "is this why you've been so down lately, because you guys broke up or something, or is it because he's gone off somewhere."

"Well we broke up, but not because anything real. And yes it's partly been because he's gone."

"Why didn't you tell us before now. I mean obviously there is a reason why you're telling us now...but why didn't you say anything when there was no reason?" Harry's voice was soft, a little hurt seeping into his tone.

"I just couldn't. Not because I didn't trust you as a friend or anthing, I didn't think you'd abandon me or anything. But if Draco was going to be a good spy for the order, then Voldemort would have to think he was a real follower. Which meant that dating a muggle-born was completely and utterly out of the question. We just figured it would be easiest if no-one at all knew. But this isn't the point. You're getting me off track, I can explain all this later when we've got time. Draco and I can communicate using this locket he gave me, but when we were talking just now, someone came into his room and caught him. I don't know how much they heard or anything but I don't feel good about this at all. They said something like "What the fuck are you doing Draco?" then the connection ended, but I think they must have heard him say my name."

Harry summed up everyone's thoughts in one word.

"Shit."

"Yeah," Ron agreed.

"This is bad guys, I don't even know where they are, but Draco is in a big house somewhere surrounded by death eaters, one of whom I think heard him say 'Hermione love'. So I think you understand why I am freaking out."

"Hermione, like you said, you don't even know where they are…did Draco describe the house at all?" Harry asked.

"It's a big old abandoned mansion, windows boarded up, overgrown garden, it's near a Muggle village, so the house was probably a Muggle house. That really doesn't help at all does it. And Draco and Snape apparated there so it could be in Australia for all we know."

"It could be, but I reckon it's in England. I know this is a little far fetched, but it sounds a little like the Riddle Mansion." Harry waited to see what the others would think of his idea.

"Harry you have never been to the Riddle House."

"I have."

"In a dream."

"So? It wasn't a real dream and you know it. The house was big and boarded up, the garden was everywhere, and it was a Muggle House. There was a Muggle caretaker who used to live there until Voldemort killed him. It could be the place. No one from the ministry has been staking it out since the end of fifth year. They never supposed that Voldemort would use the same house twice for hiding out. Plus, I saw it in Dumbledore's pensieve last year."

"It's so far fetched, but at least it's something to start on I suppose," Hermione said uncertainly."

"What do we do now? Go to Dumbledore?" Ginny asked.

"Of course," Harry said at the same time that Hermione said,

"God NO."

"What? No? Hermione if we go to Dumbledore-"

"then he'll take hours to plan an attack, summoning people, debating the location…by the time they decide anything Draco could be dead. And you know that if people attack the Riddle Mansion, the Death Eaters will know they're after Draco and probably just kill him."

"What do you propose we do then Hermoine?" Ron asked, looking puzzled.

"Go ourselves."

"You're joking," Harry almost shouted, "you know what happened last time we did something like that. Sirius died. I am NOT going to let you go rushing to God knows where with no idea what you're up against where you could be killed. I am not losing anyone else to this fucking war. We are going to Dumbledore and that's that."

"Fuck that Harry. You can't order me around. The sooner someone gets to Draco the better."

"Hermione, we can't just go rushing in to anything," Ron was a little taken back by the violence of Hermione's reply, and by the look of determination on her face.

"Ron is right," Ginny piped up, slipping her hand into Hermione's and squeezing it.

"Don't side against me and then try and comfort me Ginny," Hermione said as she dropped Ginny's hand.

"Sorry, but I don't think rushing into anything is a very good idea."

Hermione glared at her three best friends, angry that they wouldn't agree.

"Look Hermione, you want things done fast, then come to Dumbledore with us. I'll go and get my invisibility cloak, you guys throw on some clothes, and be back here in two minutes," Harry smiled encouragingly at Hermione who glared back, but went to get dressed all the same.

As the four were scuttling through the entrance hall, Hermione stopped suddenly, whipped the cloak off the other three and ran towards the door.

_Gamble Everything for Love, Gamble Everything,_

_Put it in a place you keep what you need,_

_You can gamble everything for love if you're free_

_You gotta gamble everything for love._

"If we wait for Dumbledore, it'll be too late," Hermione whispered coldly as the shut the door on her friends. Harry, Ron and Ginny wrenched the door open again, trying to get Hermione before she was far enough away to apparate, but the pitch darkness and the invisibility cloak did not work in their favour, and it was evident that it would be useless.

"We have to go to Dumbledore right now, we can't catch her, but Dumbledore might be able to," Harry looked angry that he hadn't kept a closer watch on Hermione. Although, it he really thought about it, running off to save someone with no plan whatsoever was really something he'd do.

Hermione sprinted towards the school gates, hoping the others wouldn't be able to catch her. She glanced back at the school's main entry doors and was glad to see no-one was following. They were probably rushing to Dumbledore's office. As soon as she was off school grounds, Hermione thought to herself _The Riddle House The Riddle House The Riddle House_ over and over before a sense of airlessness engulfed her and she vanished with a crack. She reappeared in a huge overgrown garden, stumbled a little and walked straight into a tree.

_Baby are you cold, are you cold baby,_

_I could wrap you up with my love if you wanna,_

_You can gamble everything for love if you wanna,_

_You can Gamble everything for love._

Hermione regained her balance and glared at the tree while she rubbed her forehead. She looked down and realized that the cloak had gotten caught up and the bottom of her legs were showing. She untangled the fabric and made sure none of her was showing. An icy wind whipped a branch into her face, and Hermione beat it off, wrapping her cloak more firmly around her. She shivered as she looked up at the house, both from apprehension and from the cold. It was too bad she couldn't have worn a real cloak, but the others would have wondered why the hell she was wearing her winter cloak to go to Dumbledore's office. _The hallways are cold wouldn't have cut it as an excuse_, Hermione thought to herself, grinning at the incredulous look that would have been on Harry's face, before turning her thoughts to the huge house in front of her. _Where the hell am I?_

_Tell me are you feeling lost, have you crossed_

_Into places that you never knew to get through,_

_Tell me are you gonna cry all night,_

_Tell me the truth and I'll tell you the truth_

_If you gamble everything for love you're gonna be alright._

_Alright._

_Alright, Lets assume that this is in fact the Riddle Mansion. If so, then that's really cool, since I didn't think you could apparate somewhere if you couldn't actually picture the place you wanted to go physically in your mind so that's cool. Either that or my mind just conjured up an image of what the Riddle House could look like and I was transported there which is actually just a haunted house in some theme park and any second there are going to be tourists tramping all over this place. Ok let's assume that this is in fact the Riddle House and go from there._ Hermione crept quietly through the garden, picking her way around the brambles towards the house. Hearing a loud thud, she froze and stared up at the house. On the bottom floor something banged into the boards on the window and one fell into the room beyond. Someone walked swiftly past the window, and then the board flew back into place. Hermione smiled and mentally congratulated herself on her apparating skills. At least one person in the house had magic and that greatly increased her chances that she was at the right place. Hermione continued towards the back door of the house pausing everytime she heard a noise. The wind that night was both a blessing and a curse, a blessing because any noise she made could have been due to the wind, but also any other noises could be the wind, or could be someone else creeping around. Hermione reached the back door, and careful not to disturb her cloak, held her wand out and thought _Alohomora_. The door clicked open softly and Hermione stepped back, holding her breath to see if someone would come rushing out. A minute passed and no-one had come out, so Hermione cracked the door open a tiny bit, looking to see if there was anyone there.

_Make a list of things you need, leave it empty,_

_Except for number one write love: gamble everything._

_Keep it under lock and key if you wanna _

_You can gamble everything for love._

What appeared to be a coat room was deserted, so Hermione opened the door just wide enough to slip through, then shut it softly behind her, remembering to draw the bolt again. She turned around and almost had a heart attack when she saw a huge figure standing behind her, before realising that the figure only had one foot, and was in fact a cloak and an old gumboot. Forcing herself to smile at her silliness, and the fact that another sign that this was a magical house, a wizard's cloak, had been found. Hermione had a sudden thought, and reached up to check the tag on the cloak. It was an ordinary robe, not a death eater outfit, but the tag was encouraging: _Nott_. Hermione turned to leave the room, amused by the fact that a death eater's name on a cloak was encouraging. _I am in the right place. Thank God._ She began to pad along the corridors, hoping all the while that she wouldn't meet anyone. At each door she came to, Hermione put her ear to the keyhole and listened for any signs of life or movement. Heavy breathing came from behind most of the doors, indicating that someone was sleeping, but to be sure, Hermione cast a complex charm on the doors of all the rooms, which allowed her to see through the door momentarily. It only lasted about 10 seconds, but it was enough in most cases to reassure herself that Draco wasn't in any of the rooms. Finding nothing on the bottom floor, Hermione crept towards the stairs. She kept to the sides of the staircase but still each creak from underneath her feet had Hermione's heart beating in her throat. The second floor corridor was almost identical to the one on the ground floor, save for a lone light coming from underneath the door closest to the top of the stairs. Hermione stooped to the keyhole and with a jolt heard Lucius Malfoy's voice speaking in a low tone.

"I know he is my son My Lord, I thought I knew him better than this. Nott tells me he heard Draco talking to someone in his room, and heard him say very clearly _Hermione, Love_. The only Hermione at that _school_" Lucius spat out, "is that Mudblood Granger. Draco is a skilled Occlumens but he could never hide anything from me, I know his mind like my own. He's been dating that bitch for almost a year now."

_Love me with an open heart,_

_Tell me anything. We can find a place to start_

_To gamble everything._

_We can set this thing apart, cause we're gonna_

_Gonna gamble everything for love._

Hermione tasted something metallic in her mouth and realized she had bitten her own cheek in an effort not to go in and demand from Lucius an explanation as to why he was most probably signing his own son's death warrant. _His own Son, I knew he was a real dick but this is the worst imaginable_. Hermione pricked up her ears and listened again as Voldemort began to speak. The sound of his voice sent shivers up Hermione's spine and she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

"I would have hoped your own son would have known better to consort with mudblood filth like that. I must confess myself disappointed. However I know he is a willful child…what has been done about this?"

"Only a minor punishment so far My Lord, we decided to await your verdict before anything was done. He is in his room down the hall, bound of course."

"I will see the boy in the morning…" Hermione stopped listening as soon as she heard Lucius say 'down the hall' and swiftly and silently she moved through the corridor, casting her charm on each door, looking for a flash of blond hair. The last but one door on the left showed a figure, lying bent on the wooden floor, blond hair streaked with red. Hermione took a fearful look down the corridor, before unlocking the door with her wand, closing it behind her and rushing to Draco's side. Running her wand over his bonds, the ropes sprang apart and Draco fell limply to one side. He was semi-conscious mumbling about ham when Hermione turned him onto his side, and stroked his hair off his face. She let the cloak fall back from her head, so Draco would know who she was, and revived him to full consciousness with her wand. _This was minor punishment?_ Was Hermione's first thought when she was Draco's wounds. His shirt was in tatters, his back criss-crossed with long slashes. His arms had what looked like cigarette burns dotted up their length, and one of his ankles was puffy and bruised. His face had several cuts across it, and he seemed to be having trouble breathing.

"Hermione?" Draco asked softly, the dried blood on his lips cracking as he spoke.

"Shhh, I'm taking you back to school. We'll have to go under Harry's cloak together, unless we can apparate from here?" Draco shook his head, and winced as pain throbbed in his temples.

"I didn't think so, otherwise I would have apparated to somewhere in the house instead of the garden. You'll have to walk a little, I'll try and carry you as much as I can. Can you manage?"

"Look who you're asking Granger, of course I can manage. I'm alright." Draco attempted his usual uncaring drawl, but didn't quite pull it off when he gasped as Hermione wound his arm around her shoulders.

"Sorry."

"S'ok."

_Tell me do you lose your way each day._

_Are there people you recognise, do they lie?_

_Tell me do they make you feel too real,_

_Tell me the truth and I'll tell you the truth._

_If you gamble everything for love you're gonna be alright._

_Alright._

Hermione had just finished arranging Harry's cloak around the two of them when the door creaked open and Lucius Malfoy walked in. He looked shocked, then angry when he saw the empty room, but wasn't quick enough to react when Hermione's wand appeared apparently out of mid air and a voice whispered _Petrificus Totalus._ His fall to the ground was cushioned by Draco's blankets which were lying in a tangled heap on the floor. Hermione and Draco moved swiftly towards the door, but weren't quick enough, and a man they both recognized to be Theodore Nott's father walked in. He took one look around the room, saw that Draco was gone, Lucius lying bound on the floor and something red flashed out the end of his wand. The red jet of light flew out the door, and Hermione could see parts of it breaking off and sliding underneath each door. Nott pointed his wand at Lucius and his limbs sprang apart again. He jumped to his feet, seething with anger.

"She's here. They're still in this room, or they're not far." Nott didn't have to ask who, he began firing curses around the room at random, hoping one would hit something solid. Hermione tugged Draco towards the door, hoping to slip past while Nott and Lucius were firing spells, basically destroying the tiny bedroom. Before they could get out the door, five other men piled into the room, as well as a woman who Hermione recognized to be Bellatrix LeStrange. Stopping herself from reaching out and slapping every inch of Sirius' killer she could reach, she pulled Draco back from the new group of Death Eaters.

"We got your rubix Nott, so the boy has escaped?" Bellatrix glared at Lucius as though it were his fault.

"Lucius thinks they're still here somewhere…maybe still in this room." With a nod from Nott, the eight death eaters formed a line against the left hand wall of the room and slowy began to advance across it, arms touching. There was no way that Hermione and Draco would be missed. Thinking quickly, Hermione grabbed Draco's hand and performed a levitation charm on the two of them. They floated slowly towards the ceiling, Hermione's left foot just missing the tallest death eater by a centimeter. Problem was, she didn't think to stop them before they reached the ceiling. Draco's head hit it before Hermione's with a soft thump, but a thump nonetheless. Bellatrix froze in her tracks and stared upwards.

_Ooh you can go your own way._

_Ooh you can go your own way._

_Ooh you gotta go your own way._

_If you gamble everything for love _

_If you gamble everything for love_

"They're up there," she hissed. Draco's heart actually skipped a beat, but he reacted quickly all the same, ignoring the tightening sensation in his chest, and pointed his wand at the wall opposite the door. He propelled them towards the door, and once they were there, Hermione ended the levitation charm. Problem no.2, the edge of the invisibility cloak caught on the door frame and for a split second two sets of legs flashed into the visible spectrum. Abandoning all stealth, Hermione hit the ground half running, still holding tightly onto Draco's hand.

"Out the door! GO!" Shouts followed them down the corridor, along with heavy footfalls. Racing down the stairs, Hermione forgot everything but getting away. The invisibility cloak billowed around them, the two figures flashing in and out of visibility. Hermione had almost reached the bottom of the staircase when someone grabbed Draco's arm jerking both of them backwards.

"_Stupefy"_ Hermione yelled pointing her wand at a man who could only by Goyle's father. He dropped to the floor and they continued running. Jets of red and green light flashed past them, but it was a lot harder to aim at a target who was a) moving around extremely fast and b) only visible half the time. When they reached the cloak room, Hermione sealed the door behind them, knowing it would only buy them a little more time, and turned and watched Draco unlock the back door which lead to the garden. The invisibility cloak had slipped down and both hers and Draco's heads could be seen. They swung the door open to run out into the garden, only to be stopped by the sight of someone standing in the doorway

"Miss Granger I presume. I can't believe we haven't been properly introduced yet, what with you dating my son and all. I can't believe Draco hasn't bothered to bring you home to meet Narcissa and I." Lucius twirled his wand lazily in his hand, unperturbed by the fact that both Hermione and Draco were pointing wands straight at his heart.

"You know what Lucius," Hermione ignored his previous comments and spoke airily, as though she wasn't facing the Dark Lord's second in command and didn't have six other death eaters only separated from her by a wooden door. "I think on some things, the muggles know what they're onto." Still holding onto Draco's hand, Hermione stepped forward so that her wand was touching Lucius' chest, then quick as a flash, put her hands to his shoulders, brought him towards her and kneed him in the groin.

"Didn't need magic to do that, and I certainly don't need to be a seer to know that you're not going to be having any more children to fuck around." She stamped on Lucius' wand, breaking it in two, and accidentally kicked him in the groin as they passed where he lay on the ground.

_Gamble Everything for Love, Gamble Everything,_

_Put it in a place you keep what you need,_

_You can gamble everything for love if you're free_

_You gotta gamble everything for love._

Hermione and Draco apparated back to outside the Hogwarts gates again, and only when Draco collapsed upon landing did Hermione remember the extent of his injuries.

"Oh God Draco…can't believe you made it this far in the state you're in…me pulling your arm practically out of it's one we've got to get you to Madame Pomfrey." Hermione wrapped her arm around Draco's waist, draped his arm across her shoulders and pulled them both to their feet, whereupon Draco's face turned a whiter shade of pale, save for two angry looking cuts across his forhead, which still bled sluggishly. Hermione heard Draco's sharp intake of breath, followed by a succession of short, shallow breaths before he spoke again.

"I'm-" his voice cracked as he tried to speak, and he had to summon enough saliva into his mouth so it wouldn't happen again.

"I'm alright," he tried again, but winced as the cut on his lip broke open and began to bleed again.

"You're obviously not alright," Hermione commented as dryly as she could, trying not to let her desperation show in her voice, "but I'll let it pass." Hermione and Draco began the slow walk up the hill towards the castle entrance way, and were a third of the way up the hill when Hermione gave an exclamation, pulled out her wand, thought of Draco, of Harry and Ron, and watched happily as a silver otter shot out the end of her wand.

"Find Harry, Ginny, Ron, Dumbledore, anyone." The otter swept off towards the castle and Hermione stopped walking. Draco turned his head towards her, his eyes clenched shut from pain.

"Why are we stopping?"

"I'm getting help to come to us. I sent a Patronus to get someone, at the rate we're going we'd be lucky to get to the castle before lunchtime. It's dawn already." Hermione pulled off the invisibility cloak, folded it and set it on the ground. A portion of the grass vanished and an expanse of blackness appeared, but Hermione still steered Draco towards it, sitting him on the now cushioned ground. Transfiguring a rock into a large crochet blanket, she wrapped it around Draco's shoulders, noticing him beginning to shiver.

"Draco, you're probably going to go into shock. You need to stay warm, give me your hands." Draco had given up talking at this point in time, but wearily pointed his wand at Hermione. The shirt she was wearing transfigured into a thick jumper, and Hermione smiled at his concern for her. She grabbed his hands, and began rubbing them, his fingers were white from the cold, and icy to touch. Draco lay on his side, his head resting in Hermione's lap, and Hermione quickly cast an engorgement charm on the blanket to make it big enough to cover the both of them. They sat waiting for someone to arrive, Draco almost dozing off, when Hermione prodded him in the temple with her wand.

"That should help you stay awake, you can't go to sleep you hear me, you might have a concussion." Draco nodded, his face still screwed up in pain. Hermione heard shouts from the castle and the sound of people running down the hill towards them. She turned sleepily, the adrenalin she had been running on well and truly exhausted, and saw Dumbledore, Harry, Ron and Ginny racing towards them, Fawkes flying along side them. The surge of anger when she saw he friends vanished the moment she saw the worry on their faces. They had don't exactly what she would have done had it been anyone other than Draco. And she had done exactly what Harry had done to save Sirius.

"Professor," Hermione began, her eyes drifting closed, "Draco is hurt. He has whip marks across his back, what look like burn marks up his arms, and lots of cuts all over him. And he's having trouble breathing. And I think his ankle is sprained if not broken."

Dumbledore instructed all five teenagers to hold onto each other and grabbed Harry's hand in one of his, Fawkes tail in the other. A flash of fire, and all seven (including Fawkes) arrived in the hospital wing, where Madame Pomfrey, startled as she may have been at this group appearing from nowhere in her ward, laid Draco, who it appeard despite Hermione's warning had fallen either asleep or unconscious, out on a bed, and began to examine him. Hermione watched tensely as she muttered things under her breath,

"wand burns…whip lashes…good god….two bruised ribs….fractured skull…" She glanced up and saw Hermione's white face standing out from her mess of hair, and smiled.

"I can fix him. Don't worry dear. You look terrible, take this, it's just to calm your nerves. You're more tightly wound than a violin." Hermoine gulped back the blue liquid and instantly felt sleep wash over her.

"Liar! That was….sleeping…" Hermione was asleep before she could finish her sentence, Harry and Ron, moved her so she was lying on a pillow, and pulled the blankets up to her chin.

As soon as Hermione was asleep, Madame Pomfrey turned to Malfoy to begin healing him, only to find that Fawkes had already begun her work, pearly tears dropping onto each cut on Draco's face, the wounds closing over leaving only dried blood behind. She smiled at the bird, and began to work on Draco's ribs, skull, back, and ankle. Fawkes healed the burn marks up and down Draco's arms before flying to rest on Dumbledore's shoulder.

_Tell me are you getting hurt, is it worth it?_

_Tell me are the people strange, do they change?_

_Tell me are you letting go, do you know?_

_I'll tell you the truth if you tell me the truth._

_If you gamble everything for love,_

_Gamble everything for love_

_If you gamble everything for love you're gonna be alright._

_Alright._

_Alright._

When Hermione woke up it was late in the afternoon, the sun already dipping below the window sill. She blinked groggily a few times before everything came rushing back to her and she sat up in a panic. Where was Draco?  
She looked around her wildly, then saw him in the next bed over, his face and arms unmarked, his breathing regular and even. Hermione let out the breath she didn't know she'd been holding, and got out of her bed, only to crawl into Draco's with him. She slipped her hand into his, her touch waking him from his sleep. He turned his head and saw Hermione smiling at him, and whispered to her.

"I'm alright."

**a/n: Hope you enjoyed it, despite the (sorry) huge break between chapters. Review please and let me know what you think, and hopefully check out some of my other fics. I just wrote this one because it came into my head while listening to Ben Lee, loved the song so here we go…hope you enjoyed it. **


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